The State of Health Care

Again, from This American Life comes stories of (completely legal) refusals to pay out for necessary operations. This was the most telling:

REP. BART STUPAK: Let me ask of our CEOs this question, starting with you Mr. Hamm, would you commit today that your company will never rescind another policy unless there was intentional fraud - fraudulent misrepresentation in the application?

DON HAMM: I would not commit to that.

REP. BART STUPAK: How about you Mr. Collins, would you commit to not to rescind any policy unless there is an intentional fraudulent misrepresentation?

RICHARD COLLINS: No, sir. We follow the state laws and regulations. And we would not stipulate to that. That's not consistent with each state's laws.

REP. BART STUPAK: How about you, Mr. Sassi, would you commit that your company will never rescind another policy unless there was an intentional fraud, misrepresentation?

BRIAN A. SASSI: No, I can't commit to that. The intentional standard is not the law of the land in the majority of states.

REP. JOE BARTON: Doesn't it bother you that people are going to die, because you insist on reviewing a policy that somebody took out in good faith and forgot to tell you that they were being treated for acne? Doesn't that bother you?

DON HAMM: Yes sir, it does. And we regret the necessity that that has to occur even a single time and we've made suggestions that would reform the system such that that would no longer be needed.

Burn the private industry down.